Kitchens

Photography Essay by Gun Gun Gumilar and Janet Nicol

For many Westerners the kitchen is the heart of the homes, and for families much of our parenting happens here. As we prepare food and sit down together, we interact with our children, and learn not just what they did at school that day, but so much more. Topics over a meal can range from politics to table manners, religion, nutrition or world capitals. As parents we model listening, sharing and social behaviour. The kitchen is where we prepare our kids to become mature adults, learn how to be polite and patient, and how to cope with things we don’t like. For families raising children in Bali, things can be a bit different: we often have a pembantu or cook that joins us in this foreign foods. They patiently learn our quirky ways like baking cookies or how we set the table just so. And then they go home at the end of the day to their own homes to participate in a completely different kitchen culture and culinary traditions around food and eating. -Janet Nicol

This photo essay is a collaboration between myself, a western mother living in Bali and founder of inspired Bali, and the talented Javanese photographer Gun Gun Gumilar.